2G 1998 Mitsubishi Eclipse Rim Help!

[vigilantex69]

Hey! I'm looking at getting Motegi MR7 Rims for my 1998 Eclipse Spyder. However, I still have the stock rims on it and they say they are 16 inch rims. Should I get 17's or 18's? Will 18's fit without rubbing?? I like 17's because I know they will fit but 18's might look better. Does anyone have 18's and they know they will fit without any modification? Thanks!

 

[knight007]

I'm pretty sure that they will fit as for the rubbing my 17's rubbed.

 

[n0c7]

I've got 18's with 225/40 rubbers all around, 2 inch drop in the front and about a 1.5 inch drop in the back, they don't rub.

 

[ericmetcalf11]

17's and 18's should both fit if you change your tire to a lower profile and you haven't lowered your car.

-Eric

no sig

 

[Eternalsolitude]

On my 99 gs I had 18' wheels on 225/40s and there was no rubbing. The car was lowered 1.75"

However, if you are to carry a heavy load and take a corner hard, it may rub. It's an easy fix though, simply bend the lip in the wheel well upwards.

 

[TurboFever]

Not to hi jack the thread but, I have heard larger rims make your speedometer less acurate. Have you guys noticed it? How bad is it?

 

[CrippleFight]

not too far off, search on google for it there is some miata related site with a a formula and calulator for it

 

[wret]

Hey! I'm looking at getting Motegi MR7 Rims for my 1998 Eclipse Spyder. However, I still have the stock rims on it and they say they are 16 inch rims. Should I get 17's or 18's? Will 18's fit without rubbing?? I like 17's because I know they will fit but 18's might look better. Does anyone have 18's and they know they will fit without any modification? Thanks!

Here are the short answers.

1. The size you choose is up to you and should be based on the type of driving you will be doing (daily, autox, show, etc.). Get light, wide 17's for the best handling. Get heavy 18's for looks.
2. I've never heard of wheels rubbing. Tires rub. As a couple others indicated, tires may rub when they are either larger overall diameter or larger width, and are affected by factors such as suspension lowereing, wheel offset and adjusting camber.
3. Many people have 18 inch wheels with no modifations. Many more had to roll their fender flanges.

There some FAQ's and numerous threads on tire fitment in this site. Read them. Heres the tire size calculator I use often to compare overall diameters of tires for different wheel sizes. http://www.miata.net/garage/tirecalc.html

 

[vigilantex69]

awesome, I think I'm going to go with 17's with low profile Kuhmo. I like the simple rims. This car is used for daily driving not for show really, I just would like some nice rims to show off. Any ideas? I really like the Motegi MR7 or the Konig Tantrums. That style.

 

[Sbeing1]

i have 18" 225/40's dropped 1.75 no rubbing at all. If it were me, and this is what i did, find some lightweight 18"s and look good and have good perfomance as well. I think it was motor trend that did a study on which size wheels are best for performance if they all weighed about the same, 17"s won but 18"s were a close second. I say if your driving this thing around town and dont care to drop a milisecond in your 1/4 mile go for 18"s, find the lightest ones you can. IMO

 

[Mist3r Spool]

The Eclipse has a pretty large wheel well. I've had two sets of 18" wheels (both Racing Harts) and one set of 19" wheels (also Racing Hart). None of them rubbed. The key is to having the proper offset wheel and tire size. I like 18" wheels the best, they fit the wheel well good and, unless you purchase a cheap-o brand, aren't too heavy to hinder performance. It's all up to you though, as stated, do you want show or go?

 

[napkinthief]

pretty much as long as you stay close to the stock tire size, there will not be rubbing

i have stock ride hieght with 14" stock rims and my front right tire rubs, but then again my car got some problems

 

[vigilantex69]

i think im going to go with 18 inch motegi mr7's their nice looking rims and if i get low profile tires they shouldnt rub right? One other question. Everyones talking about lowering their car? That keeps the tires from rubbing? My spyders not lowered so i wouldnt think there would be any problem?

 

[n0c7]

i think im going to go with 18 inch motegi mr7's their nice looking rims and if i get low profile tires they shouldnt rub right? One other question. Everyones talking about lowering their car? That keeps the tires from rubbing? My spyders not lowered so i wouldnt think there would be any problem?

Actually, opposite. By lowering the car, the tires will be closer to the fender well and have more chance of rubbing. Lowering your car also creates a whole new line of problems. Your front end takes more of a beating, your stock shocks won't last, you'll need camber kits all around to keep your wheels aligned, anything else I'm missing guys?

 

[NW97GSX]

I didn't think you needed a camber kit for lowering springs, but if you lower with coilovers then yes a camber kit is needed.

anyone know if you actually need a camber adjustment with lowering springs?

 

[Mist3r Spool]

I didn't think you needed a camber kit for lowering springs, but if you lower with coilovers then yes a camber kit is needed.

anyone know if you actually need a camber adjustment with lowering springs?

You'll need a camber kit nine times out of 10 when you lower your car, period. The only case where you may not need a camber kit is if you purchase and Eibach ProKit since it doesn't have an aggressive drop. I have H&R Sport springs and have a little over 3 degrees of negative camber in the back, the front is OK. You can purchase a camber kit for the back for less than $20, it consists of some washers and bolts to space things out to help give about 1-3 degrees of correction.

 

[n0c7]

When you drop the car in most cases, your wheels go from looking like | | to / \. In my case, my front was really bad whereas I could have got away without the kit in the back. I've still ruined $1000 worth of rubber trying to get things right, and it's still not perfect. There are many factors to deal with when it comes to lowering your car. If you don't do it right, or are just doing it because you want the low look, you can easily end up making your handling worse than stock and put excessive wear on suspension parts, especially tires.

 

[wret]

Myth #1: Negative camber will wear out your tires very quickly.

When you lower your car two things happen to your alignment. The most obvious is the camber becomes more negative. The second is the toe changes. Both the front and rear gain some toe out. Many people lower their suspension and do not adjust the alignment right away. When their tires quickly wear out they assume the most visible alignment variable, camber, is the culprit. Camber does not wear out your tires. Toe does. Any amount of camber other than zero, will accelerate the wear from toe, usually on the inside of the tires.

Myth #2: After lowering your suspension you will need camber kits.

There are two main reasons for lowering your suspension: 1) to lower the center of gravity for better handling, and 2) looks. There are some recommended alignment settings for best handling and best tire wear in the FAQ's. For best handling, it's best to leave as much negative camber as possible in the front and adjust the rear back to about -1°. I say "adjust" because this can be done without an expensive camber kit. The adjustment is made with longer bolts in the upper control arm brackets and spacer washers. For best tire wear you will need to add a front camber kit. You should decide on these adjustments before your lower your suspension. That way you can drive your car immediately to the alignment shop. You need to make your camber corrections before you get an alignment.

 

[vigilantex69]

Ive found some 18inch konig tantrum rims with low profile tires. Do you think they will fit on my 1998 eclipse spyder? They should fit and shouldnt rub but do you think they would look dare i say goofy? with the rims? Does anyone else have 18 inch rims that look good? any suggestions? Thanks

 

[Mist3r Spool]

I have Racing Hart C2s (polished) and Racing Hard C5s (Black w/polished lip) and they are 18" wheels and they look awesome. I'll never go to anything less for the street.

 

[Mist3r Spool]

Here's a pic of Signal's car, our cars are damn near identical, except I sold my RMDSM lip, ditched my clear bumper signals (ricey), and don't have tinted windows. Anyway, those are 19" Racing Hart C2s. Looks nice, huh?

 

[vigilantex69]

wow that looks friggin sweet!

 

[r33gtr12]

mine rub with stock rims and non low profile tires i have like a 1.7 inch drop

 

[vigilantex69]

I bought some 17 inch Motegi MR7 rims with Kuhmo tires. I think they will look nice even though their not 18's

 

[iiiwildfireiii]

I put a set of 17" Konig Unknowns on my Spyder (225/45/17) and I had HUGE gap. 2 1/2 - 3 inches of it. If you've got a set of 17" rims, I hope you got a 50 series tire or are planning on lowering your ride a bit. I know I'm going to have to end up lowering mine.